


Prisoners of circumstance

by PoisonJack



Series: FebuWhump 2021; star wars; borderlands fills [3]
Category: Star Wars - All Media Types, Star Wars Sequel Trilogy
Genre: Ambiguous/Open Ending, Angst, Canon Divergent, Commander Poe Dameron, Established Relationship, General au, Implied/Referenced Brainwashing, Imprisonment, M/M, Poe Dameron Needs A Hug, Poe Dameron needs his hugs, Post tlj pre-tros, Spy Armitage Hux, Unreliable Narrator, Whump, millicent the ysalamir
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2021-02-06
Updated: 2021-02-06
Packaged: 2021-03-17 23:14:42
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,273
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29233608
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PoisonJack/pseuds/PoisonJack
Summary: Hux saves Poe from a mortal wound by taking him to the Resistance and escaping the First Order. Poe tries to explain that Hux is ontheirside. That he was responsible for Poe even being alive. That Poe had fallen inlovewith him.Poe's sanity is questioned when it's implied he's had his memory altered through brainwashing or the force.This is for day 3 ofFebuWhumpover on tumblr :) The prompt was 'imprisonment'.
Relationships: Poe Dameron/Armitage Hux, gingerpilot - Relationship
Series: FebuWhump 2021; star wars; borderlands fills [3]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2140923
Comments: 4
Kudos: 29





	Prisoners of circumstance

**Author's Note:**

> Don't squint too closely at space physics/force magic/sci-fi fantasy science/medicine too closely >_> It's all psuedo science for the easy sake of fast fic fills BAHA! :D <3

They dragged Hux away in binders while Poe fought the oxygen mask being fixed to his face on the gurney. There were hands trying to remove the collar from his neck. He was bleeding, and he knew they were trying to _help_ , but his only concern was for _Hux_. 

“Commander, lie _still, please._ You’re _bleeding_ -“

“ _Hugs_!” Poe felt delirious, reaching out as Hux left his immediate line of sight, roughly taken away in binders. He tried yelling out again for the man, and immediately cried out in pain instead.

“ _Poe_ , take it _easy--”_

There was something mixed in with the oxygen on his face; something chemically-sweet. Medicine, or painkillers. He wasn’t sure, and he couldn’t think straight as dizziness took him. But whether that was from the blood-loss, or the narcotics, he didn’t know.

 _“...Hugs!…_ ” He was being moved out of the hangar, ceiling above him once more as they crossed a threshold. “ _H-He’s on our side-”_

“Poe that’s--” Poe looked widely up at Finn as the man kept pace, a steadying hand on his shoulder far away from the wound. “You’ll be okay, just take it easy and let them help you.”

His vision was spotty-- he was going to pass out- but he had to let them _know_. They _had_ to know; there couldn’t be any misunderstandings. Poe grabbed Finn’s forearm where the other man was trying to help keep him down. The ceiling was moving quickly above him. It was dizzying and disorienting. “...you _can’t_ \-- _Finn!_ ”

“I’m right here, man. Right here.” It was difficult to give him a quick pat with his free hand, but Finn tried to reassure him. “You’re safe, alright?”

Finn’s gaze was intense with concern as Poe’s eyes locked with his, his hand squeezing weakly in urgency. He couldn’t fight against the chemically-sweet air any longer, grip lessening as he barely got the words out. “...he’s… _he’s our spy_ … a _spy…_ ”

\--

Poe was disoriented when he woke up, heart-rate spiking after barely a moment as his consciousness connected with reality. _Hux_. 

A gentle murmur reached him through the blood rushing in his ears, and Poe realized he wasn’t alone. He calmed just a bit as a hand pat his leg reassuringly over the covers; Leia at his bedside, Dr. Kalonia standing next to her. 

“So you’re alive and in one piece,” Leia spoke. “You’ve got more lives than a cat, Dameron.”

Poe blinked at her. 

“How do you feel?” Dr. Kalonia asked.

“...where’s Hux?” Poe croaked instead, mouth and throat dry.

“In a cell.” A look passed between Leia and Dr. Kalonia. The doctor made an excuse of getting something for Poe to drink, leaving them in a moment of privacy.

Poe opened his mouth to speak, but Leia beat him to it.

“You’re gonna have to explain this to me, Poe,” she said plaintively. “How is it the _Starkiller_ is in our custody? What happened?”

“...he’s our _spy_.” Poe found the words easily enough. It was only because of Hux that he was even still alive.

“ _Him?_ ”

He nodded emphatically. His mouth was dry, and he swallowed hard. “It’s been him the whole time… He got me out of there. Can’t go back. Doesn’t wanna go back.” Poe moved to sit up in his bed, wincing a little. He felt tender where they must’ve stitched the wound closed.

“You’ve been gone for _weeks_ , Dameron.” 

“I-I know.”

“How are you still alive?”

“...he kept me alive.” Poe began to get a bad feeling. “I know it sounds nuts, but it's real. Everything we’ve ever gotten is from him. He’s on our side.”

“Poe, we were told Kylo Ren took you prisoner himself...”

Yeah, that much was true. But Poe had been in disguise when the town had been rounded up, and the captives had been presented to Hux’s discretion as Ren headed after those who’d retreated into the forests.

Hux had recognized him almost immediately— had studied his face beyond mistake after the pilot had destroyed their dreadnought. Poe had thought he was royally screwed when he saw the recognition alight in Hux’s eyes.

But the general hadn’t said anything, instead observing the others who’d been captured, looking for more infiltrators. No one stood out, but he didn’t indicate Poe, either. The pilot had been processed with everyone else, giving a false name to their intake and being taken out of a cell just as soon as he’d been put _in_ one.

He’d been brought to Hux for an interrogation, but not torture. No, he’d been Hux’s unwitting contact, caught in a set of coincidences that had placed him far too close to Ren for the knowledge in his head. He had to hide Poe. They were far from any inhabited systems already, and no way to possibly sneak him out until their course changed. 

Poe was still having trouble believing it himself. From that first accusative finger Hux had pointed at him for being an idiot and getting caught and putting them both in jeopardy, Poe had realized he kind of _liked_ the guy. 

The small ysalamir named Millicent that Hux kept in his quarters was the only thing that borrowed him peaceful moments. It wasn’t quite a pet, but it’s very-real force-negating qualities earned the reptile the affectionate nickname of “Millie”, and a habitat with a warm rock.

The animal became Poe’s new accessory. It was the only way Hux could guarantee his safety when Ren was on board, the reptile curled up in Poe’s collar. He needed his presence undetected. Hux had information for the Resistance, and Poe needed to stay alive for his overall deadliness in battle. 

The implication that Poe might’ve instead had his free-will affected, or his memory altered, made him frown. “I— what? Are you kidding me?” A flare of indignance and insult burned to life inside of him. Leia gave him an earnest look, but she didn’t entirely deny it. “You think I was _brainwashed_? I’m telling the _truth_.”

“It’s not like that,” she said with an earnest sort of tone. “I know you, Poe. And I know how powerful my son is… They had you for _weeks_ , and we know what their reconditioning programs alone do. Put yourself in my shoes, commander.”

Poe had a _really_ bad feeling about this. “...Can I see him?”

“Not right now, Poe.”

He suppressed the chill of anxiety at the base of his spine, growing as he anticipated another negative. “...Can I leave?”

“Not yet, Poe.”

So he was to be every bit a prisoner as Hux was until they decided whatever it was they decided about ‘Poe’s state of mind’. It was so laughably ridiculous it almost made him want to cry.

He told himself to remain calm, think _clearly_ … Decided to spill his guts— he was in _love_ with the man, _he’d let them read his mind to prove it_ \- but then Dr. Kalonia was coming in to the warning alarm on Poe’s vitals, and he was given a sedative to rest.

They’d talk about this later, and Leia promised she wouldn’t let anything happen to Hux while they figured things out. Poe was recovering from what could’ve been a _death-blow_ ; _would’ve_ if he hadn’t gotten to help so quickly. 

His body was weak right now, but Leia promised, as his vision swam and his eyes grew heavy, that he’d be up and about again _soon_ after his body had a chance to rest and heal. They would talk about everything _later_ , when he _wasn’t_ freshly out of a coma.

But right now, as his eyes finally shut and he relaxed into the covers, he needed to _heal_. 

**Author's Note:**

> Well as we all know i can't stand the hurt without a happy ending, so they both pass a mind-check and live happily ever after as far as i'm concerned. _OR_ it's a lot bleaker and Poe _was_ brainwashed as part of some new strategy... lol idfk thank you for reading my nonsense! I'm slow at posting but having fun! :D
> 
> [my star wars tumblr](http://go-hux-yourself.tumblr.com/) | [my fic archive masterlist](https://go-hux-yourself.tumblr.com/post/187723542337/poisonjack-ao3-fic-archive)| [my twitter](https://twitter.com/PurgeThatUrge)
> 
> Please leave kudos and a comment if you enjoyed! ao3 FAQ: [Can I post comments anonymously, or if I don't have an Archive account? ](https://archiveofourown.org/faq/comments-and-kudos?language_id=en#anoncomment)


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